Jesus Is Alive

(Matthew 28.1-10; Mark 16.1-8; Luke 24.1-12)

20 On Sunday morning while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. ² She ran to Simon Peter and to Jesus' favorite disciple and said, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb! We don't know where they have put him.”

³ Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ⁴ They ran side by side, until the other disciple ran faster than Peter and got there first. ⁵ He bent over and saw the strips of linen cloth lying inside the tomb, but he did not go in.

⁶ When Simon Peter got there, he went into the tomb and saw the strips of cloth. ⁷ He also saw the piece of cloth that had been used to cover Jesus' face. It was rolled up and in a place by itself. ⁸ The disciple who got there first then went into the tomb, and when he saw it, he believed. ⁹ At that time Peter and the other disciple did not know that the Scriptures said Jesus would rise to life. ¹⁰ So the two of them went back to the other disciples.

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

(Mark 16.9-11)

¹¹ Mary Magdalene stood crying outside the tomb. She was still weeping, when she stooped down ¹² and saw two angels inside. They were dressed in white and were sitting where Jesus' body had been. One was at the head and the other was at the foot. ¹³ The angels asked Mary, “Why are you crying?”

She answered, “They have taken away my Lord's body! I don't know where they have put him.”

¹⁴ As soon as Mary said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there. But she did not know who he was. ¹⁵ Jesus asked her, “Why are you crying? Who are you looking for?”

She thought he was the gardener and said, “Sir, if you have taken his body away, please tell me, so I can go and get him.”

¹⁶ Then Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

She turned and said to him, “Rabboni.” The Aramaic word “Rabboni” means “Teacher.”

¹⁷ Jesus told her, “Don't hold on to me! I have not yet gone to the Father. But tell my disciples I am going to the one who is my Father and my God, as well as your Father and your God.” ¹⁸ Mary Magdalene then went and told the disciples she had seen the Lord. She also told them what he had said to her.

The People Destroy the Local Shrines

(2 Kings 18.4)

31 After the Festival, the people went to every town in Judah and smashed the stone images of foreign gods and cut down the sacred poles^[a] for worshiping the goddess Asherah. They destroyed all the local shrines^[b] and foreign altars in Judah, as well as those in the territories of Benjamin, Ephraim, and West Manasseh. Then everyone went home.

Offerings for the Priests and Levites

² Hezekiah divided the priests and Levites into groups, according to their duties. Then he assigned them the responsibilities of offering sacrifices to please the Lord^[c] and sacrifices to ask his blessing.^[d] He also appointed people to serve at the temple and to sing praises at the temple gates. ^3 (A) Hezekiah provided animals from his own herds and flocks to use for the morning and evening sacrifices, as well as for the sacrifices during the Sabbath celebrations, the New Moon Festivals, and the other religious feasts required by the Law of the Lord.

^4 (B) He told the people of Jerusalem to bring the offerings that were to be given to the priests and Levites, so that they would have time to serve the Lord with their work. ⁵ As soon as the people heard what the king wanted, they brought a tenth of everything they owned, including their best grain, wine, olive oil, honey, and other crops. ⁶ The people from the other towns of Judah brought a tenth of their herds and flocks, as well as a tenth of anything they had dedicated to the Lord. ⁷ The people started bringing their offerings to Jerusalem in the third month,^[e] and the last ones arrived four months later. ⁸ When Hezekiah and his officials saw these offerings, they thanked the Lord and the people.

⁹ Hezekiah asked the priests and Levites about the large amount of offerings. ¹⁰ The high priest at the time was Azariah, a descendant of Zadok, and he replied, “Ever since the people have been bringing us their offerings, we have had more than enough food and supplies. The Lord has certainly blessed his people. Look at how much is left over!”

¹¹ So the king gave orders for storerooms to be built in the temple, and when they were completed, ^12-13 all the extra offerings were taken there. Hezekiah and Azariah then appointed Conaniah the Levite to be in charge of these storerooms. His brother Shimei was his assistant, and the following Levites worked with them: Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah. ¹⁴ Kore son of Imnah was assigned to guard the East Gate, and he was put in charge of receiving the offerings voluntarily given to God and of dividing them among the priests and Levites. ^15-16 He had six assistants who were responsible for seeing that all the priests in the other towns of Judah also got their share of these offerings. They were Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah.

Every priest and every Levite over 30^[f] years old who worked daily in the temple received part of these offerings, according to their duties. ¹⁷ The priests were listed in the official records by clans, and the Levites 20 years old and older were listed by their duties. ¹⁸ The official records also included their wives and children, because they had also been faithful in keeping themselves clean and acceptable to serve the Lord.

¹⁹ Hezekiah also appointed other men to take food and supplies to the priests and Levites whose homes were in the pastureland around the towns of Judah. But the priests had to be descendants of Aaron, and the Levites had to be listed in the official records.

^20-21 Everything Hezekiah did while he was king of Judah, including what he did for the temple in Jerusalem, was right and good. He was a successful king, because he obeyed the Lord God with all his heart.

(A psalm and a song by the clan of Korah.)

The Glory of Mount Zion